Home Buying Process: Closing Costs
To first-time buyers, closing costs are a mystery; most people have a slight idea of what they are, but don’t know what’s specifically involved or how much the cost will be. Many think closing costs refer to the notary fee, end of story. In reality, though, there’s more to it than that.
In addition to a down-payment on your mortgage, you (the buyer) will need to put aside a little extra for costs related to a home purchase. Here is a list of the usual costs involved
Posted By: Deya Bautista - Real Estate Broker working as part of the McGill Immobilier team. Specializing in high end condos in downtown and Old Montreal. For buying or selling contact Deya at: 514.917.7889 http://montrealrealestateblog.com/
How to Protect Yourself When Buying New Construction
Following up with the article: New Condo Building Collapsing. Another great article by William Marsden from the Gazette, on how to protect yourself when buying new construction. The tips are quite interesting, I will add my own comments between the square brackets [ ]
The New Home Guarantee covers new condos that are part of small, one-to-fourstorey condo buildings. Highrise condo buildings are covered by private insurance plans.
Like all insurance policies, it’s important to understand fully the conditions of the Quebec government’s plan so you can protect yourself at every step during and after the construction process.
HERE ARE SOME TIPS:
1. Check with the Régie du bâtiment that the contractor is properly licensed and check his experience. Just because he holds a licence to install a foundation doesn’t necessarily mean he knows what he’s doing. [ Very Important!! - also check for any awards won by them, written articles and reviews about their company etc]
2. Make sure you read the entire condo purchase agreement so that you know exactly what you are buying and so that you understand your rights and liabilities relating to your condo and your building’s common spaces. This will help you make sure that at the end of construction, you get exactly what you were promised and that you are not liable for unforeseen payments to, for example, unpaid subcontractors.
3. The warranty covers up to $39,000 as a down payment. So don’t pay more than that. If the contractor goes bankrupt, you will probably lose anything above that amount. [ Again, do your homework about the previous work from the company to establish their credibility, financial strength, etc. Some units, depending their price, will require more than 39K as a downpayment ]
4. Get to know your fellow condo owners as soon as possible. Don’t wait until after construction is finished to form a condo association. Hire your own inspector to assure the work is done properly while the building is still under construction. Get the inspectors to supply written reports on the progress. If you can’t afford an inspector, call the city and get them to inspect the construction progress.
5. At the end of construction, your association must hire an inspector to inspect the entire building. Make sure that you get everything you paid for and that the work conforms with the building code. If the inspector finds any problems, make sure they are repaired before the condo association accepts ownership. DON’T make your final payment until all the work is completed to your satisfaction. Contractors might make empty promises and harass you for the money. If you give in, you’ll might never see them again.
6. Make sure that any communication with the contractor is done by registered mail so that you have an official record. You must make any claims on the warranty within six months of finding the problem, so you have to have a record of all communications. And make sure you send notification of faults immediately after they are discovered by registered mail to the administrators of the New Home Guarantee program. According to the Régie, many owners find they are not covered because they allowed a contractor to delay the work past the six-month period and then had no record of communications to prove their claim. [ Email will also work. Keep records of all of the messages sent and received ]
7. The guarantee lasts only five years.
8. Remember, in the end, only you can look after your interests. [ I could not agree more.]
Posted By: Deya Bautista - Real Estate Broker working as part of the McGill Immobilier team. Specializing in condos and revenue property in the metropolitan area of Montreal. For buying or selling contact Deya at: 514.917.7889
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New Condo Building Collapsing – The Gazette
“It was a new condo building.
A construction flaw was making it collapse under its own weight.
The city condemned it as unsafe. The residents had to move out.
The turned to the new home owners warranty to pay for the massive repairs.
But there was a loophole.”
This was the first paragraph on the front page of Montreal Gazette’s on Saturday. Anyone, buyer or not- will become extremely wary of buying new construction after reading the entire story.
The builders have not been held accountable for the damages, nor they have repaired (or offer to do so) the disaster of construction they created. The administrators of the New Home Guarantee Program refused to cover the repair costs to the building because the (five year) warranty had expired at the time all the faults were discovered.
The warranty program requires that when construction is completed, the contractor must inform the condo association that it has to hire an independent, professional building engineer to assure the work meets the building code and the specifications of the purchase agreements. The inspector’s report is then given to each condo owner. If more work is required, the owners can hold back their final payment until the faults are repaired. When the construction is deemed to be finished, all parties sign an end-of-construction document and ownership of the building is turned over to the condo association. That’s when the five-year guarantee begins.
Posted By: Deya Bautista - Real Estate Broker working as part of the McGill Immobilier team. Specializing in condos and revenue property in the metropolitan area of Montreal. For buying or selling contact Deya at: 514.917.7889
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